Whatever floats yer boat this weekend. Open thread for music...
President Donald Trump's new acting attorney general insists that the Department of Justice has to move on from the Epstein files -- while denying that the issue cost his former boss her job.
Leading AI models will lie to preserve their own kind, according to researchers behind a study from the Berkeley Center for Responsible Decentralized Intelligence (RDI). Prior studies have already shown that AI models will engage in deception for their own preservation. So the researchers set out to test how AI models respond when asked to make decisions that affect the fate of other AI models, of peers, so to speak.
U.S. job openings fell more than expected in February and hiring dropped to the lowest level in nearly six years, government data showed on Tuesday. read more
Last year, just before the Fourth of July holiday, the US Space Force officially took ownership of a new operating system for the GPS navigation network ... read more
I'll start with a one-hit wonder ...
Citizen King - Better Days (And The Bottom Drops Out) (1999)
www.youtube.com
Have fun!
@#7 ... The simple truth is, the US consumes more crude oil than it produces....
Strait of Hormuz? Trump's almost no oil' claim debunked
www.hindustantimes.com
... In an attempt to seemingly downplay the impact of the Strait of Hormuz embargo on rising gas prices in the US, Trump claimed in his Wednesday address to the nation that the US imports "almost no oil" via the Strait.
Donald Trump gestures after delivering an address to the nation about the Iran war Wedensday. (via REUTERS)
Donald Trump gestures after delivering an address to the nation about the Iran war Wedensday. (via REUTERS)
Trump's claim sparked a row as the Strait of Hormuz has been a major point of contention with Trump seeking help from NATO allies to secure the Strait and subsequently threatening to leave the alliance amid their refusal over escalation concerns.
But in his speech Wednesday, the 79-year-old took a complete U-turn and downplayed the importance of the Strait of Hormuz to US oil imports. "The United States imports almost no oil through the Hormuz Strait and won't be taking any in the future," Trump proclaimed.
Also read: Trump says Iran was at the doorstep' of a nuclear weapon, defends strikes on nuclear sites
How Much Oil Does US Import Via Hormuz?
The data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) show that Trump is wrong. The US imports a significant amount of crude oil from Persian Gulf countries via the Strait of Hormuz.
The EIA's 2024 data, the latest available, shows that the US imported at least 0.5 million barrels of crude oil per day. Post 2024, only the 2025 Q1 data is available on US crude imports via Strait of Hormuz. It shows that the import via the Strait decreased slightly to 400,000 barrels per day.
In fact, the import of crude via the Strait if Hormuz has significantly gone down since 2022. In 2022, the US imported 700,000 barrels of crude via the Strait, while in 2023 the number was same as 2024, at 0.5 million barrels per day, according to the EIA.
Contrary to Trump's claim, 0.5 million barrels per day amounts to 7% of the US's total annual crude oil imports and 2% of total petroleum liquid imports. ...
@#8 ... we have never lost an F15 in combat before ...
5 Fighter Jets That Have Never Been Shot Down In Aerial Combat (July 2025)
www.slashgear.com
... The McDonnell-Douglas F-15 Eagle
Of all the fighter jets that haven't been shot down in air-to-air combat, the McDonnell-Douglas F-15 Eagle and its many variants have the most impressive record. As of this writing, no F-15s have been lost in aerial combat, but they've managed to down an impressive 104 enemy aircraft. Part of the reason the F-15 has been so successful is its widespread use by numerous nations' militaries. Of course, it's more than sheer numbers that have made the F-15 the beast of the skies, as it's incredibly agile, fast, and capable of dogfighting even more advanced planes. ...
Trump floats reopening Alcatraz -- here's how much revenue the notorious prison generates (May 2025)
www.foxbusiness.com
... The federal prison at Alcatraz closed in 1963 because it was several times more expensive to operate than other prisons.
President Donald Trump on Sunday announced that he's directing federal agencies to reopen the prison at Alcatraz after rebuilding and expanding the prison that was shuttered over 60 years ago and currently serves as a museum and tourist destination in the San Francisco Bay Area.
The maximum-security federal penitentiary at Alcatraz Island opened in 1934, located 1.25 miles from the coast, where it was thought to be escape-proof because of the San Francisco Bay's strong currents and shark-infested waters. The federal prison housed notorious criminals like Al Capone, and saw a high-profile escape that inspired the 1979 Hollywood film "Escape from Alcatraz."
The prison at Alcatraz closed in 1963 because it was no longer cost-effective compared to other prisons. Ahead of its closure, the Bureau of Prisons said Alcatraz's operating costs were over three times that of any other federal prison in 1959 " $10.10 daily per capita cost compared with $3 in Atlanta. ...
Trump weighs more Cabinet changes after Bondi ouster
www.politico.com
... President Donald Trump has expressed frustration and disappointment with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer -- and is pondering making additional changes to his Cabinet.
"He's very angry and he's going to be moving people," an administration official familiar with the dynamics told POLITICO. That official and three other people with knowledge of Trump's thinking around his Cabinet were granted anonymity to discuss the unresolved personnel issues.
The additional potential moves follow the ouster of Attorney General Pam Bondi Thursday and former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem last month. ...
Related...
Trump wants the world to buy more US oil. He might regret it.
www.politico.com
... President Donald Trump wants the world to buy more U.S. oil, but he might regret the offer if it raises gasoline prices.
Trump in his speech Wednesday night specifically called on countries dealing with fuel supply shocks brought by the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran to purchase more from America: "Buy oil from the United States of America. We have plenty." ...
Also ...
Blog: How much oil does the United States import (and why)? (January 2025)
www.afpm.org
... About 60% of the crude oil that runs through U.S. refineries is extracted right here at home. However, our refineries run on many different types of crude oil, some of which we don't produce here or can't economically transport. In those cases, we use imports. ...
Does the Trump admin even care about online security?
Remember this from a year ago?
The Atlantic releases the Signal chat showing Hegseth's detailed attack plans against the Houthis (March 2025)
apnews.com
... The disclosure follows two intense days during which leaders of President Donald Trump's intelligence and defense agencies have struggled to explain how details " that current and former U.S. officials have said would have been classified -- wound up on an unclassified Signal chat that included Atlantic Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg, ...
@#31 ... Reportedly Piggy asked Iran for a 48 hour ceasefire ...
Found this...
Iran says it rejects Trump offer of 48-hour ceasefire: Report
www.middleeasteye.net